La Crema is one of the larger brands focused on Sonoma chardonnay and pinot noir, so I am happy to see them delving into single vineyard offerings as well. This pours fairly deep yellow. It is full on oak fermented and aged creating a souffle of nutmeg spice, butter, toast and butterscotch around tropical fruit. It is medium-full bodied, texturally rich and creamy yet underpinned by lemony acidity. The flavours are very rich, the length is excellent to outstanding.

Adam Lee made the name Siduri through his adept handling of some of the best Pinot Noir fruit in California. Since he sold the brand to Jackson Family Wines, the focus has shifted somewhat to incorporate other varieties and regions. Case in point. This light straw, tasty Willamette Valley Chardonnay has oodles of citrus fruit, a fair amount of toasty goodness, and an abundance of white flower aromas. The palate? Perhaps better than what the nose portends with fruit (albeit subtle), crisp acidity, and more than an ounce of verve. Sure, there are better Chards out there with more “interesting” pedigrees, but for around twenty-five bucks? It would be difficult to beat this one. Excellent.

The colour of golden afternoon sunshine, La Crema's Kelly Ann Vineyard chardonnay is a striking and compelling wine. Ripe lemons and apples are enveloped in rich barrel flavours of butterscotch, cedar, nutmeg, and toasted fenugreek seeds. The buttery, smooth as satin silk palate is lifted and supported by tart acidity. There is excellent concentration here and the finish is long and memorable.

Inviting, with rather lush raspberry and boysenberry puree flavors laced with cinnamon and tea. Reveals a warmed fruitcake accent on the finish. A bit obvious in style, but will have fans. Drink now through 2024.

Five great Merlot wines There are countless great Merlot wines on the market today. These five producers, listed alphabetically, are a perfect way to start exploring all that Merlot has to offer. Château Lassègue From their base on the Right Bank, in St.-Émilion, Château Lassegue produces two excellent reds: Les Cadrans and their eponymous grand vin. The flagship wine brings together Merlot with Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, and represents not just excellent fruit and winemaking, but also remarkable value. The current-release 2018 costs around US$60 (Rs 4780), and its brambly berries, plums, and subtle core of savouriness make it excellent for enjoying right now, as well as a great candidate for ageing in the cellar.

Hand picked, as one would expect from this luminary. Partly (55%) destemmed, crushed and wild fermented on skins in 675L eggs. The rest in eggs, sans skins. Arguably the finest white wine in the Vale. A few contenders. A lustrous deep yellow. Saline, as is so much in these parts. Then a decompression of rooibos, the ripest lemon that sits as a figment of the imagination, raw pistachio and green olive-brine martini. Thick, intense, powerful and yet, tiptoeing across a drawbridge of phenolics, almost the daintiest powerhouse that I've pirouetted with.

Sourced from the contoured quilt of estate vines, a confluence of silts, loams and ferrous outcrops. A traditional blend of the finest performing blocks and best barrels (50% new). A nose tingling with a visceral energy, such is the mineral-clad spine to this wine. Rich and powerful, to be sure, as the sweetness of shiraz and its blue-fruit aspersions meander across cabernet's bones of finely tuned tannins, dried herb and cedar-oak cladding. Yet the overall effect is one of umami warmth, savoury depth and immense potential. This is an iconic wine and deservedly so.

From the Nocton vineyard in Coal River Valley. Hand picked by 10.30am, into a refrigerated container. The MV6 clone (60%) is whole bunches and the D5V12 clone is fully destemmed. All barriques, 20% new. A gorgeous, bright, crimson. Perfumed and seductive, this leaps out of the glass with an array of aromas including red and black fruits, peony, Asian spices, orange peel and a hint of fresh vanilla bean. More sweet fruited and textured on the mid palate compared to the more fine-boned and linear Yarra single-vineyard pinots. Concentrated but not heavy, with ripe, gently chewy and persistent tannins rounding out an impressive and still quite tightly wound wine, that will need another year or 2 to relax and really hit its straps.

From the Sexton vineyard in Gruyere, planted on the same grey clay as the Applejack vineyard; 50% whole bunches and 50% destemmed. Matured 11 months in French barriques (20% new). Bottled unfined and unfiltered. A dark, deep crimson. A more robust Yarra Valley pinot with its aromas of dark cherries, black plum and a dried-earth character that makes it quite different to the other Giant Step single-vineyard pinots. Sweetly fruited, concentrated and structured on the palate, what this impressive wine doesn't have in finesse, it makes up for in power and grunt. This should still be looking good, 10, if not 15, years from now.

An excellent GSM thanks to maker Pete Fraser's erudition when it comes to the Rhône. A spice rub of complexity galvanises the fruit, without overwhelming it. The overall effect is one of freshness, detail, pangs for the Mediterranean and a delicious, full-weighted and savoury gulpability rather than the norm of pulpy, sweet fruit. Charcuterie, clove, thyme, rosemary, ume, turmeric, raspberry, sandalwood and scrub. A wonderful spread of umami warmth across the nourishing finish. An enticing day-to-day proposition.

This wine has shapeshifted nicely over the years, segueing from a fruit-forward iteration to a more streamlined, taut and spicy expression. Mid weighted, savoury and highly suggestive of the northern Rhône. Aromas of mace, clove, dill pickle, salumi and spiced cherry. Yet there is nothing hard to the tannins or too challenging for those seeking established styles. Juicy and long of flow, this makes for excellent, versatile everyday drinking.

Dark garnet to purple color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of currants, dark plums, tar and black cherries. Flavors of black cherries, plums and raspberries. Medium acidity, firm tannin, full bodied. Drink now with some air.

Looking for a great pinot without spending a bundle? Try this one for less than $20. "Their less interventionist winemaking methodology paired with grapes sourced from cool climate vineyards creates a beautifully restrained but elegant pinot noir," said Mike Reed, beverage director at Tacos Guey in New York City."
[This is] a marked difference from the much fuller-bodied and heavily oak-influenced pinots coming from California that consumers may be used to."

Composed of 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, and the remainder of Petit Verdot, the 2019 La Joie is compact and unfolds more slowly in the glass. The nose is rich with graphite, sage oil, and black plum. The palate is full of kirsch, fresh leather, currant, and tobacco, with fine tannins that go for ages, along with the fruit and well-balanced acidity. This will warrant 3-5 years cellar to express its full potential over the following 20 years.

The 2019 Le Desir is based on Cabernet Franc, with the remainder 8% Merlot, 5% Malbec, and 4% Cabernet Sauvignon. It is complex and layered, with hints of saddle leather, pencil shavings, tangy red cherry, and blackcurrant. The palate is full and elegantly structured, with mocha, red plum, and turned soil. This is an incredible wine with lots of underlying tension that will be a pleasure to revisit if afforded the opportunity. Drink over the next 20 or more years.

The 2019 La Muse offers a luxurious and layered perfume of red apple, sweet tobacco, and fresh leather. The palate is generous, with velveteen texture, noes of cassis, violets, and fresh earth, and a weightless feel. The most open of the three presented by Verite, this is an incredible wine and will be fantastic to check in on over the next two or more decades.

Coming from the Sebastopol Hills, the 2019 Chardonnay Jennifer's was aged for 13 months in 30% new French oak. Displaying aromas of fresh green apple and wet stone, the palate is concentrated and powerful, with a persistent long finish, and the feeling like a rod of energy in its mouthfeel. Drink 2024-2034.

The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Helena Dakota is compact with menthol oils, sage, dark iron-rich earth, and cassis. The palate is savory, with tightly wound structure, and delivers dried herbs, fresh fig, violets, and scorched earth. Allow for a few years in cellar and drink 2025-2045.

The 2019 Pinot Noir Far Coast Vineyard is sourced from a mountain ridge north of Fort Ross on the Sonoma Coast. It is dark-fruited on the nose, with black raspberry liqueur, warming spice, and forested earth. It has an ample and powerful structure, with black cherry fruit and firm tannins that will benefit from some time in bottle. This is a more serious, brooding wine that can stand up to richer fare and grilled meats. Hold it for 2-4 years and drink over the following 10-15 years. 2024-2038.

Moving into a touch of savory aromas, with pine, sea spray, and lime zest, the palate of the 2019 Chardonnay Seascape Vineyard is rounded up front, with more pineapple, and has a softer, more approachable texture than the Jennifer’s.

The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Helena Montana, from chalk soils with western-facing exposition, is the most exuberant in terms of its aromatics, with candied flowers, cherry liqueur, sweet tobacco, and graphite. The fruit fills the palate up front and through the mid-palate, with a refreshing spine of acidity and great mineral texture. The tannins are ripe and well-integrated. This is a delicious wine out of the gate and will be worth holding onto and checking in on over the next 20 years.

The 2019 Pinot Noir Arrendell Vineyard is intricately layered and unfolds with pine, sweet smoke, and black cherry candy. The palate is full-bodied, with root beer spice and fleshy ripe fruit that fills through the mid-palate and long finish. Drink it over the next 10-15 years.

Sourced from a vineyard named after Don and Jennifer Hartford’s son, MacLean and located east of the town of Occidental on a gentle east-facing slope, the 2019 Pinot Noir MacLean's Block commands your attention with forward aromatics of dark mineral earth, Amarena cherry, cedar, and baking spice. One of the only Russian River Valley wines where some whole cluster is used, its structure is more powerful and well-balanced within its larger, more firmly tannic framework. Drink 2024-2042.

The 2019 Pinot Noir Docker Hill Vineyard is cloaked with a light confectionary aroma of roses, sweet red plum, and cinnamon spice. The structure is ripe, with tannins that emerge on the finish with warming spice. Drink 2024-2036.

The 2019 Pinot Noir Jennifer's is more richly spiced and more brooding, with sassafras and cherry pit. The palate is more structured with saline savor, and the wine has fresh and energetic tension through the finish. Drink 2024-2038.